Chapter 320: The golden fruit 31.

By something else.

A wall of black crystal had risen from the street.

It stretched from one building to another.

At its center stood the armored figure.

The same one from the convoy.

He removed his helmet.

His face was pale.

His eyes glowed faintly green.

Yan Cijin’s expression changed.

"He is infected."

Bai Li looked at him.

"Not exactly."

The man raised a hand.

The zombies stopped.

All of them.

Complete silence fell.

Then he said, "You have come far enough."

Bai Li remained seated on the motorcycle.

"Move."

The man shook his head.

"The fruit does not belong to you."

Yan Cijin stepped forward.

"We did not ask."

The man’s mouth curved into a strange smile.

"That is why I am afraid of you."

Bai Li looked at Yan Cijin.

"Do you want him?"

Yan Cijin looked at the man.

"No."

"Good."

Bai Li raised her hand.

The crystal wall exploded.

The man flew backward.

Yan Cijin stared at the opening.

"You really do not like obstacles."

"I prefer doors."

The motorcycle surged forward.

Behind the broken wall, the zombies began moving again.

The road narrowed.

The mall was now only a few hundred meters away.

Bai Li could feel the golden fruit.

The energy signature was stronger now.

Bright.

Warm.

Almost alive.

Yan Cijin felt it too.

"That is it."

"Yes."

"What does it feel like?"

"Like sunlight."

Yan Cijin looked toward the mall.

The building was dark.

"Sunlight in a place like that."

Bai Li nodded.

"Strange."

They drove onward.

Then a roar sounded from the mall.

The entire building shook.

Several upper windows exploded outward.

Yan Cijin stopped smiling.

"That did not sound like a zombie."

"No."

"What was it?"

Bai Li looked at the top floor.

"I do not know."

The roar came again.

This time, the glass on the nearby buildings vibrated.

The zombies around them began backing away.

Even they were afraid.

Bai Li stopped the motorcycle.

Yan Cijin looked around.

"Why stop?"

Bai Li pointed upward.

A shadow moved behind the top-floor glass.

It was enormous.

It passed from one end of the floor to the other.

Then vanished.

Yan Cijin narrowed her eyes.

"Whatever that is, it knows we are coming."

Bai Li nodded.

"Good."

She started the motorcycle again.

"Why good?" Yan Cijin asked.

Bai Li looked at the mall.

"It saves us time."

Yan Cijin shook her head.

"You really enjoy trouble."

"I enjoy things that stop wasting my time."

The motorcycle rolled forward.

The zombies parted around them.

The strange behavior made the road feel even more dangerous.

There were no attacks now.

No screaming.

No pursuit.

Just silence.

At last the final road curved around a fountain filled with black water.

Beyond it was the mall parking lot.

The main entrance stood ahead.

The giant sign above it had lost half its letters.

Only the word MALL remained partly visible.

The automatic doors stood open.

A cold wind moved through them.

Bai Li turned off the motorcycle several meters from the entrance.

For the first time in a long while, the engine’s silence felt louder than its sound.

Yan Cijin stepped down.

She looked back at the road they had crossed.

There was no easy way to describe it.

Twenty kilometers.

Hundreds of zombies.

Multiple survivors.

A giant mutant.

A convoy.

An armored enemy.

A storm in the sky.

And somehow, they were both fine.

Yan Cijin looked at Bai Li.

"You know," she said, "for a simple trip to a mall, this became complicated."

Bai Li removed her gloves.

"It was a normal trip."

Yan Cijin stared at her.

"Normal?"

"Yes."

"You call this normal?"

"We reached the destination."

"That is your standard?"

"Yes."

Yan Cijin laughed.

The sound echoed strangely through the empty parking lot.

Bai Li looked at her.

For a brief moment, everything felt almost peaceful.

Then Bai Li’s eyes shifted toward the entrance.

The darkness inside seemed deeper than it should have been.

Yan Cijin followed her gaze.

"Ready?"

Bai Li nodded.

She stepped forward.

Yan Cijin moved beside her.

The road behind them was full of dead creatures and damaged vehicles.

The city remained dark.

Ahead, the abandoned mall waited.

They were close enough now to see the broken tiles at the threshold.

The wind coming from inside carried the smell of dust, old fabric and something faintly sweet.

The golden fruit.

Bai Li stopped.

Yan Cijin stopped beside her.

Neither woman crossed the threshold.

They had reached the mall entrance.

Through the buildings, they could finally see the mall.

It was enormous.

Five main floors rose above a broad underground parking structure.

The upper floors were covered in vines and black crystal growth.

Most of the glass was gone.

The giant entrance sign had fallen sideways.

The parking lot was full of abandoned vehicles.

No lights.

No people.

No movement.

At least at first glance.

Bai Li slowed the motorcycle.

Yan Cijin leaned forward.

"The place feels dead."

"It is not."

"How many?"

Bai Li closed her eyes briefly.

"Hundreds of zombies inside the building."

Yan Cijin nodded.

"Expected."

"Something else."

"What?"

Bai Li opened her eyes.

"I do not know."

That answer made Yan Cijin sit straighter.

Bai Li rarely admitted uncertainty.

The road leading to the mall was blocked by a collapsed pedestrian bridge.

Bai Li looked at it.

Yan Cijin looked at her.

"No."

"I did not say anything."

"You were thinking about driving through it."

"I was."

"Do not."

"Why?"

"It will damage the motorcycle."

Yan Cijin paused.

"You care more about the motorcycle than the bridge."

"Yes."

They took a side road.

It led to the underground garage entrance.

The ramp was almost completely blocked by abandoned cars.

Bai Li looked at them.

"Annoying."

Yan Cijin stepped off.

She raised her blade.

"Want me to clear it?"

"Wait."

Bai Li raised her hand.

All the cars moved at once.

They slid sideways as if pushed by an invisible river.

Within seconds, the ramp was clear.

Yan Cijin stared.

.

.

.

TO BE CONTINUED.